xavdid's recent activity
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
xavdid Link ParentRoottrees was great! One of the best ones I've reviewed. What are some of the other Monday games you've enjoyed?Roottrees was great! One of the best ones I've reviewed.
What are some of the other Monday games you've enjoyed?
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Comment on Is anyone else frustrated with the eBay buying experience? in ~tech
xavdid Link ParentBuy-nothing groups are great. We use ours heavily (both giving and receiving). My only regret is how tied they are to Facebook. There's ostensibly a standalone forum version, but as far as I know,...Buy-nothing groups are great. We use ours heavily (both giving and receiving). My only regret is how tied they are to Facebook. There's ostensibly a standalone forum version, but as far as I know, basically everyone uses the FB version.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
xavdid LinkWe burned through Type Help, an Obra Dinn / Roottrees style deduction game about retracing mysterious deaths using only transcriptions of audio recordings. I really liked it! On my site, I said:...We burned through Type Help, an Obra Dinn / Roottrees style deduction game about retracing mysterious deaths using only transcriptions of audio recordings. I really liked it!
On my site, I said:
Ingenious little puzzle game about using (written) audio logs to track characters' paths through a house as they die dramatically. Its minimalistic UI helps the writing shine. The nonstop chain of logical deductions kept us on the edge of our seats. We made a spreadsheet to track everything, which is a marks of a great puzzle game. I would have liked some actual sound effects (keyboard, music, or even voice acting) and there were a couple of nits we had with the ending, but it was a blast nonetheless. Excited for more!
It's free to play in the browser: https://william-rous.itch.io/type-help
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Comment on Day 15: Warehouse Woes in ~comp.advent_of_code
xavdid LinkPython: Step-by-step explanation | full code There were probably more clever ways to approach today, but I got a lot of mileage from "moving" strings around a 2d grid. Part 1 I could do naiively....Python: Step-by-step explanation | full code
There were probably more clever ways to approach today, but I got a lot of mileage from "moving" strings around a 2d grid. Part 1 I could do naiively. For Part 2, I iteratively built a list of list of rows I'd need to move when moving vertically. I'd find the box-half I started with, it's pair. I'd loop, finding everything that either of those touched (and so on) until I reached an entirely empty row or hit a wall anywhere. Then I shifted boxes back-to-front and moved myself.
There was a lot of debugging today, so my grid printer and little animation generator were worth their weight in gold.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
xavdid LinkI'm a juror for the Thinky Awards, so i've mostly been playing a bunch of those nominees. I collected my impressions into a little blog post:...I'm a juror for the Thinky Awards, so i've mostly been playing a bunch of those nominees. I collected my impressions into a little blog post: https://david.reviews/articles/thinky-awards-2024-impressions/
There's a bunch of good games, but the ones I liked the most / am the most excited to revisit are:
- Reliquia Park
- Entwined Time
- Isle of Sea and Sky
- Slider
- Star Stuff
But honestly all of the nominees were fun for their own reasons
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
xavdid Link ParentIMO don't feel like you have to push through- games are supposed to be fun and not a choreIMO don't feel like you have to push through- games are supposed to be fun and not a chore
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Comment on Single most useful program you daily use? in ~tech
xavdid LinkThere are a lot of great apps in here, but the one I couldn't live without is Things 3. It's how I keep track of basically everything I need to do, from work to chores to calling friends on their...There are a lot of great apps in here, but the one I couldn't live without is Things 3. It's how I keep track of basically everything I need to do, from work to chores to calling friends on their birthdays. It all goes in there and it all gets done.
I've tried other todo apps with more features or more complexity, but nothing beats the absolute smoothness of the Things UI. It turns out that if it's an app you touch a lot, having it be nice to use goes a long way.
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Comment on Book recommendations for regular people living through fascist/authoritarian regimes? in ~books
xavdid LinkThese are all great history-related recs, but does anyone have any good fiction to recommend? I guess the obvious one is Handmaid's Tale, but I wasn't sure what else should go on the list.These are all great history-related recs, but does anyone have any good fiction to recommend? I guess the obvious one is Handmaid's Tale, but I wasn't sure what else should go on the list.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
xavdid Link Parent+1, I never watch a trailer for a movie I ever want to see. I've basically sworn them off ever since I learned that the original trailer for Jordan Peele's Get Out was going to include: Get Out...+1, I never watch a trailer for a movie I ever want to see. I've basically sworn them off ever since I learned that the original trailer for Jordan Peele's Get Out was going to include:
Get Out spoilers!
The girlfriend threateningly jangling her keys
by studio request. Luckily it was pulled at the last minute, but I still don't trust any trailers.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
xavdid LinkFinally watched Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (after watching the original 3 short films leading up to it). I rated it 3/4 on my blog and said:Finally watched Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (after watching the original 3 short films leading up to it). I rated it 3/4 on my blog and said:
Charming, yet more modern feeling. Lots of great jokes. Pacing was a little slow and the story was less focused than it could have been. That's what happens when you translate 30 min movies into a 90 minute one. Felt like they could have tightened it up a fair bit.
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Comment on My hobby: reviewing things! Here are my favorites games, movies, shows, books from 2024. in ~hobbies
xavdid LinkOrdinarily this sort of thing would belong better in ~games, ~tv, ~books, and ~movies, but I didn't feel like it was nice to post it 4 times. Anyway. My list is somewhat unique in that something...Ordinarily this sort of thing would belong better in ~games, ~tv, ~books, and ~movies, but I didn't feel like it was nice to post it 4 times. Anyway.
My list is somewhat unique in that something is only eligible if I watched/played/read it for the first time in 2024 (regardless of when it came out). So a game that came out in a year with a lot of stiff competition has a shot at winning in a way it might not have for the Game Awards.
I've really enjoyed writing reviews and putting it all together, so let me know what you think!
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My hobby: reviewing things! Here are my favorites games, movies, shows, books from 2024.
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Comment on Thinky Awards 2024 nominees in ~games
xavdid Link ParentYou're welcome! It's a great site. I basically always find something new for my wishlist when I go there, so it's sort of a dangerous game. 😅 I'll have to check out the word searches!You're welcome! It's a great site. I basically always find something new for my wishlist when I go there, so it's sort of a dangerous game. 😅
I'll have to check out the word searches!
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Thinky Awards 2024 nominees
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Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv
xavdid LinkFinished S2 of Arcane, which I enjoyed. The art / music / design is once again, bar-none the best thing I've ever seen. Story was pretty good, but I think S1 had the edge. S2 had too many...Finished S2 of Arcane, which I enjoyed. The art / music / design is once again, bar-none the best thing I've ever seen. Story was pretty good, but I think S1 had the edge. S2 had too many characters and too many subplots, which caused it to lose a bit of focus, I think. Still a fun watch though!
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Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv
xavdid Link ParentSuch a fun show. Season 1 airing during covid lockdowns (Aug 2020) made for such a pleasant change of pace from everything. Just a little ray of sunshine each Friday for everyone.Such a fun show. Season 1 airing during covid lockdowns (Aug 2020) made for such a pleasant change of pace from everything. Just a little ray of sunshine each Friday for everyone.
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Comment on Bookshop.org’s ebook store is a local-first competitor to Amazon in ~books
xavdid LinkI really like the idea of this - ebooks supporting real bookstores is great. I don't love the DRM. Having to use their app for purchased books is annoying. My understanding is that it's all pushed...I really like the idea of this - ebooks supporting real bookstores is great.
I don't love the DRM. Having to use their app for purchased books is annoying. My understanding is that it's all pushed from the publishers and it's not something that bookshop.org can control, but it's still annoying.
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Comment on We're bringing Pebble back! in ~tech
xavdid LinkIt's great to see them coming back! I adored my Pebble(s). 2 fun stories: Pebble supported 3rd party watch faces based on a file. There was a great little site that let you use a visual UI to...It's great to see them coming back! I adored my Pebble(s). 2 fun stories:
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Pebble supported 3rd party watch faces based on a file. There was a great little site that let you use a visual UI to build the file and, if done from your phone, upload it right to the watch. Once, when out at midnight beer launch, I made a custom face for the beer and won a little keychain from the brewery. My Apple watch could never.
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Once time in 2014, I ran into some Pebble engineers at an ice cream shop in Palo Alto, they spotted my watch, they bought my scoop! Fun, weird little Silicon Valley moment.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
xavdid LinkI'm finally reading Bad Monkey by Carl Hiaasen. I've always heard good things, but I would always mix it up with another favorite of mine (Bad Monkeys by Matt Ruff; don't @ me). I'm glad its Apple...I'm finally reading Bad Monkey by Carl Hiaasen. I've always heard good things, but I would always mix it up with another favorite of mine (Bad Monkeys by Matt Ruff; don't @ me). I'm glad its Apple adaptation convinced me to give it a shot though - it's a great read so far!
Been playing Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. It's decent? The story is straight out of the movies, which is fun (if well-trodden). The combat and stealth are pretty basic, but the brawling feels true to the vibe of the movies. The puzzles are ok as well. Exploring the larger areas is neat, but I wish there was more interesting progression/rewards for that exploration.
I think its license does a lot of lifting for its overall reception. Without it, you're left with a middling Uncharted ripoff. But, I'm enjoying it enough to see it through.